Knitting of inside-out hosiery



Nov. 9; 1937. Y W J. s. CHIPMAN 2,098,740

KNITTING OF INSIDE-OUT HOSIERY Filed Jan. 21, 1937 OOOOO OGOOOIOQGOOD I 00000 OOOOOOOOQLOOOOOOOQOO OOOO7000 OOOOOOOOL INVENTOR 1 l AT T RwE s M Patented Nov. 9, 1937 UNITED STATES 2,098,740 KNITTING or INSIDE-OUT HOSIERY John S. Chipman, Easton, Pa., assignor to Chipman Knitting Mills, a corporation of Pennsyl- Vania Application Januaryzl, 1937, Serial No. 121,491

' 4 Claims.

The present invention relates to improvements in the knitting of inside-out hosiery, and more particularly to a method of transferring the leg and heel portions of the blank to a footer.

In the knitting of the leg portion of the stocking blank, it is the usual practice to change carriers in the knitting of the heel flaps, so that a loose yarn end is normally left at one of the heel corners formed between the instep and heel flap portions of the blank. In transferring the leg blank to another machine for the knitting of the foot, this yarn end is ordinarily left standing on the upper side of the blank which forms the inside face of the stocking when seamed and turned,

ever, in the knitting of inside-out hosiery, in which the upper or normally inside face of the stocking is worn outside, this yarn end will appear on the outside face of the blank, and will seriously detract from the appearance of the finished stocking.

In carrying out the present invention, it is proposed during the operation of transferring the leg blank to the footer, to position this yarn end in such a manner that it will be more effectively locked into the knitted fabric to permit the shorter cutting of this end without causing the fabric to unravel, and will further operate to cause the remaining length of this loose end to appear on the under or normally outside face of the fabric;

The several features of the invention will be readily understood from the following description of applicants method taken in connection with the illustrative drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a somewhat diagrammatic view in side elevation of a completed inside-out stocking; Fig. 2 is a somewhat diagrammatic plan View of the leg blank supported on the points of an ordinary transfer bar; and Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail view of a portion of the fabric supported on the points with the loose end wound around and between the points of the transfer bar shown in Fig. 1.

As shown in Fig. 2 of the drawing, the finished leg blank including the leg portion l0 and heel tabs l2 and M, has been removed from the legger, and the last course of instep loops and adjacent inner selvage wale loops of the heel tabs have been transferred onto the points l6 of an ordinary transfer bar, so that the fabric is retained with the same side up when transferred to the foot knitting machine. Owing to the fact that separate yarns are usually employed in the knitting of the heel flaps l2 and i4 and previously active yarn carriers are thrown out of operation at so that the end is effectively concealed. Howthis time, a yarn end I8 is left at the heel corner formed between the instep fabric generally indicated at 20 and the inner selvage wale of the adjoining heel flap l2. Under ordinary circumstances, this yarn end would be left on the upper or normal inside face of the fabric in the, position shown at la in Fig. 2, and would then appear on the inside of the stocking when seamed and turned in the usual manner. In the knitting of inside-out hosiery, the transfer operation performed in the manner above described, would cause this yarn end if left on the top face of the fabric, to appear on the outside of the stocking in its finished state, and would seriously detract from the appearance thereof. The severed end cannot advantageously be trimmed close to the surface of the fabric, due to the tendency of this yarn to unravel, with consequent injury to the fabric. In accordance with the present invention, applicant proposes after the leg and heel flap portions of the leg blank have been placed on the points I6 of the transfer bar, to lay this yarn end rearwardly between the points of the transfer bar to cause the yarn end when the foot portion of the fabric is knitted, to appear on the under side of the blank-which in the knitting of inside-out hosiery, becomes the inside face of the finished stocking. The position of the yarn laid in this manner is indicated by the dot-and-dash line lflb.

'In order more effectively to conceal this yarn end and to tie the end into the finished fabric,

applicants method in its preferred form comprises the following steps, of wrapping the yarn end [8 rearwardly around one of the points it, preferably that supporting the last needle loop knitted from said yarn, and then forwardly around an adjacent point supporting the second needle loop formed from said yarn, finally passing the yarn end again rearwardly through the points of the bar as shown in full lines in Figs. 2 and 3, so that this end will appear on the under face of the completed blank. When the loops held on the transfer points are now transferred to the needles of the usual footer, the yarn end 18 will be located with relation to the needles in identically the same relative position shown with relation to the transfer points l6. During sub-- sequent knitting of the next course, this yarn end will be knitted back into the reinforced foot portion of the fabric, which serves effectively to lock or tie the yarn end into the fabric, to prevent possible pulling out or unraveling of this yarn. Furthermore, this yarn end knitted into the fabric as above described, is securely located inside the reinforced portion of the foot, which, due

gether with the under or normally outside face of the stocking will be located on the inside to complete the manufacture of an inside-out stocking.

The invention having been described, what is claimed is: I

1. The method of manufacture of inside-out hosiery which comprises the steps of transferring to the points of a transfer bar the last course of instep fabric and adjacent inner selvage heel Wale loops of the leg and heel portions of a hosiery blank having a yarn'. end appearing at the heel corner between theinstep and heel fabrics, and laying the yarn rearwardly between the points to cause said yarn end to appear on the under side of the fabric during the subsequent knitting of the foot. E

2. The method of manufacture of inside-out hosiery which comprises the steps of transferring to the points of the transfer bar the last course of instep fabricand adjacent inner selvage heel Wale loops of the leg and heel poitions of a hosiery blank having a yarn end appearing at the heel corner between the instep and heel fabrics, wrapping the yarn around a plurality of said points, said yarn being wrapped alternately around the rear and front sides of successive points, and then being carried rearwardly to cause said yarn end to appear on the under face of the fabric during the subsequent knitting of the foot.

3. The method of manufacture of inside-out hosiery which comprises the steps of transferring to the points of a transfer bar the last course of instep fabric and adjacent inner selvage heel Wale loops-of the leg and heel portions of a hosiery blank having a yarn end appearing at the heel corner between the instep and heel fabrics, wrapping the yarn end rearwardly around the point supporting the last knitted loop of yarn, forwardly around the front side of the point supporting the next loop of said yarn, and then rearwardly to locate the yarn end on the downward'or face side of the fabric during the subsequent knitting of the foot.

4. The method'of manufacture of inside-out hosiery which comprises the steps of transferring to the points of a transfer bar the last course of instep fabric and adjacent inner selvage heel Wale loops of the leg and reinforced heel portions of a hosiery blank having a yarn end appearing at the heel corner between the instep and heel fabrics, wrapping the yarn around a plurality of points supporting adjacent reinforced selvage heel loops, said yarn being wrapped alternately around the rear and front sides of successive points, and then being carried rearwardly to cause said yarn end to appear on the under face of the reinforced heel portion of the blank during the subsequent knitting of the foot.

JOHN S. CHIPMAN. 

